Fernando Alonso forced to stop twice as Aston Martin battles technical issues at Australian GP. Aston Martin faces ongoing challenges in the 2026 F1 season .

The challenges for Aston Martin continued even during the first round of the 2026 Formula 1 season, with Fernando Alonso warning that it will take many more Grands Prix to fully improve the situation. The Australian Grand Prix proved particularly tough for the Spanish driver, who faced multiple issues throughout the race in Melbourne, while ongoing vibration problems remained a significant limitation for the team. Despite a very strong start that brought him into the top ten, the situation quickly deteriorated as the race progressed.

Technical problems and a double stop

In the early laps, Fernando Alonso managed to gain ground, stabilizing in tenth place. However, the promising start was not enough to maintain the pace for long.

“Obviously I was completely out of position, so I dropped down to P17 or something like that, and then we had a small issue with the data that forced us to stop the car. Then we thought we had solved it and got back on track. And I think another issue appeared, so we had to stop the car a second time.”

The Aston Martin race quickly turned into a continuous battle to manage technical problems, making it impossible for Alonso to fight for the positions that matter.

Aston Martin in Australia: the vibration issue

In addition to the race difficulties, the persistent vibration issue on the car continues to be a major concern. Even before the Australian weekend, chief technical officer Adrian Newey had highlighted how serious this problem was for the Spanish driver. “Fernando feels he can’t run more than 25 consecutive laps without risking permanent nerve damage to his hands.”

Despite some updates introduced for the Melbourne weekend, the situation does not appear to have improved significantly. “It’s not the best feeling to drive with this level of vibration. I think Honda believes the vibrations on the battery have been reduced compared to Bahrain with some changes, but this hasn’t happened yet on the chassis because they need to isolate the battery differently.”

The two-time world champion explained that resolving the issue will require further development. “So I think it will take some more time, but we try to do our best and complete as many laps as possible to help the team.”